Incinerating method and apparatus

ABSTRACT

The invention relates to a method and apparatus for incinerating a railroad car in an incineration housing wherein the railroad car is ignited and a stream of air is delivered along the underside of the car while it is being burned. For railroad cars of the type having a center door opening, and as an alternative to, or in addition to, the stream of air on the underside of the car, air is blown into the interior of the car through the door opening during burning. The products of combustion produced during the burning are treated.

United States Patent inventor Walter Erman Chicago, Ill.

Appl. No. 32,222

Filed Apr. 27, 1970 Patented July 6, 1971 Assignee Erman, incorporatedChicago, 111.

Continuation-impart of application Ser. No. 695,488, Jan. 3, 1968.

INCINERATING METHOD AND APPARATUS 37 Claims, 11 Drawing Figs.

U.S.C1 110/18 C,

263/2 Int. Cl F23g 7/00 Field of Search 1 10/7, 8,

[56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,873,101 2/1959 Babcock110/18 XP 526,283 9/1894 Anderson 110/8 3,412,985 11/1968 Perry et al.110/18 X Primary Examiner-Kenneth W. Sprague Attorney-Hume, Clement,Hume & Lee

ABSTRACT: The invention relates to a method and apparatus forincinerating a railroad car in an incineration housing wherein therailroad car is ignited and a stream of air is delivered along theunderside of the car while it is being burned. For railroad cars of thetype having a center door opening, and as an alternative to, or inaddition to, the stream of air on the underside of the car, air is blowninto the interior of the car through the door opening during burning.The products of combustion produced during the burning are treated.

PATENTED JUL 6 I97! SHEET 2 [1F 6 PATENTEU JUL 6 I971 SHEET 5 OF 6 .m z\3 Q A m M w w m fl Z 7 W \E M M Win i w W w K W ME 0 E W R Q Q? NQ w}lil I J J m0 m. M H. is m QN. vvlU Q g \i INCINEIRATING METHOD ANDAPPARATUS This application is a continuation-in-part of my copendingapplication, Ser. No. 695,488, filed Jan. 3, I968.

The present invention relates to improvements in air pollution control,and more specifically to an improved incinerating method and apparatusparticularly adapted for the incineration of combustible portions ofrailroad rolling stock.

Incineration is a commonplace technique for removing unwantedcombustible materials jn the scrapping of railroad rolling stock. Thisincineration yields a number of gases, along with liquid and/orparticulate materials, all of which are referred to collectively asproducts of combustion. Included are primarily particulate carbon andits gaseous oxides, carbon monoxide and carbon dioxide, as well as otherproducts. A large portion of these products are delivered to theatmosphere in the form of gases, or as fine particles in the form ofsmoke.

A variety of basic methods for removal or oxidation of contaminants arewell known, including electrostatic precipitation, oxidizing orafterburning" the combustion products to form harmless oxides, andwashing or scrubbing with a liquid. It is the object of the presentinvention to provide an improved method and apparatus for incineratingrailroad rolling stock, while minimizing the delivery of suchcontaminants to the atmosphere. It is a further object of the inventionto provide a method and apparatus for incinerating railroad box cars andthe like, while maximizing the efficiency of combustion of thecombustible materials within the car.

Generally, the present invention relates to an incinerating method andapparatus wherein railroad cars are introduced into a chamber forincineration. In carrying out the method, combustible materials in thecar are first ignited. As the car is burned, air is delivered along theunderside of the car during the burning, both to feed the fire and toprotect the trucks of the car from excess heat. Products of combustionproduced during the burning are treated in order to reduce pollution ofthe atmosphere.

The present invention also provides an improved method for burningrailroad cars having a central door opening (e.g., box cars,refrigerator cars, stock cars, and automobile cars), wherein the car isfirst ignited and air is blown into the interior of the car through thecentral door opening while the car is burning.

Generally, the apparatus of the present invention comprises an elongatedincineration housing having oppositely disposed entrance and exitopenings. Means are provided for removing products of combustion from anupper portion of the housing, and means are also provided for removingparticulate materials from the products of combustion. To prevent thedelivery of products of combustion into the atmosphere from the entranceand exit openings, air curtain means are provided for passing a curtainof downwardly and inwardly at the entrance and exit openings. Thiscurtain of air also serves to feed the fire, and to produce a layerofcooling air along the floor of the incineration housing.

The invention also provides an apparatus which is especially adapted tothe incineration of railroad cars having a central door opening. Inaddition to the elongated incineration housing having oppositelydisposed entrance and exit openings, the apparatus provides means forintroducing a stream of air into the interior of the car through thedoor opening. Again, means are provided for removing products ofcombustion from an upper portion of the incineration housing, along withmeans for removing particulate materials from the products ofcombustion.

The invention, both as to its organization and method of operation,together with further objects and advantages thereof, will be bestunderstood by reference to the following detailed description, taken inconjunction with the drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of an incineration apparatus embodying thefeatures of the present invention;

FIG. 2A is a partial plan view of an incineration apparatus embodyingthe features of the present invention, showing approximately half of theapparatus beginning at the entrance end;

FIG. 2B is a partial plan view similar to FIG. 2A, showing the remaininghalf of the apparatus, from the center to the exit end;

FIG. 3 is an end elevation view of the apparatus shown in FIGS. 1, 2A,and 28;

FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view of the entrance end of the apparatus,taken along line 4-4 of FIG. 2A;

FIG. 5 is a perspective view of the air curtain outlet for the aircurtain doors employed in the apparatus;

FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view of the apparatus taken along line 6-6of FIG. 2A;

FIG. 7 is a perspective view of an air introduction pipe located withinthe interior of the incineration chamber;

FIG. 8 is a broken cross-sectional view of the water scrubbing unittaken along line 8-8 of FIG. 2A;

FIG. 9 is a cross-sectional view of the outlet end of the apparatustaken along line 9-9 of FIG. 2B; and

FIG. 10 is a detailed view of the automatic igniting means employed inconnection with the present invention.

As previously mentioned, in carrying out the invention, a railroad caris placed inside an incineration chamber, where it is first moved to anignition station, At the ignition station, the combustible materials inthe car are ignited. Although ignition may be accomplished manually, inthe preferred embodiment, this ignition is accomplished by spraying astream of flammable liquid, such as oil, onto combustible portions ofthe car to set them on fire.

After the car has been ignited, it is moved to a burning station.According to one embodiment, in the case of railroad cars havingacentral door opening (e.g., box cars, refrigerator cars, stock cars,automobile cars, etc.), air is blown into the interior of the car at theburning station. This blowing of air aids in supporting combustionwithin the interior of the car, which may otherwise be starved for airbecause the only available air inlet is the open doors of the car. Ifthe car is constructed of wood, the burning will soon open up additionalgas ports, making it easier to support combustion. However, many boxcars and the like have metal walls, so that it becomes essential tointroduce air into the interior of the car through the door in order toachieve complete combustion. In one embodiment of the invention,oxygen-enriched air is delivered into the interior of the car toincrease the rate of burning. Such an increase is particularly importantduring the early stages of combustion, when it is sometimes difficult tostart the fire.

In the specific embodiment shown and described herein, the car is movedto a plurality of burning stations in order to permit a plurality ofcars to be incinerated at the same time. Thus, a first car is firstmoved to an ignition station, at which combustible materials in the carare ignited. The first car is then moved downstream (i.e., toward theexit end) to a first burning station. At the first burning station, airmay be delivered into the interior of the car while it is burning, aspreviously described. A second car is then moved to the ignitionstation, where it is ignited. The first car may or may not be moved atthis time. After the second car has been ignited, the second car ismoved downstream to the first burning station. At the same time, thefirst car is moved downstream to a second burning station, where air mayagain be blown into the interior of the car. When it is desired tointroduce a third car into the apparatus, the first car is moveddownstream to a subsequent burning station, while the second car behindthe first car is moved to the previous, i.e., the second burningstation. Additional cars are introduced into the chamber behind thesecond car. Thus, the number of cars that may be simultaneously burnedwithin the apparatus depends to a large extent upon the number ofburning stations. Generally, about 1 hour is required to burn an entirebox car, and the rate of operation must be geared to this timerequirement.

In the preferred embodiment shown, the car is cooled with a spray ofwater subsequent to the burning. This cooling reduces the introductionof smoke into the atmosphere through the smoldering that would otherwiseoccur.

The preferred embodiment shown in the drawings is primarily adapted tothe incineration of railroad cars having a central door opening, e.g.,box cars. Accordingly, in the following description, it is assumed thatthis type of car is being incinerated. However, it will be understoodthat other types of cars may also be incinerated according to thepresent invention, and that these cars may be interspersed with, or mayentirely replace, the cars having a central door opening.

Referring to the drawings, an incinerator embodying the features of thepresent invention is generally indicated by reference numeral 10. Asshown in FIGS. 1, 2A and 2B, the incinerator has an elongatedincineration housing 12, which is externally supported by a plurality ofA-frame members 14 having their ends imbedded in the earth 16. TheA-frame members 14 and housing I2 are particularly well shown in FIG. 6.

As shown in FIG. 3, the incinerator 10 has an entrance opening 18 at oneend. FIG. 9 shows the exit opening 20 at the opposite end. A pair oftracks 19 are positioned on the floor 21 of the incineration housing 12,and a pair oflow-lying earth retaining walls 23, of concrete or thelike, are positioned adjacent to the tracks 19.

As previously mentioned, the apparatus of the present invention providesmeans for passing a curtain of air downwardly and inwardly at theentrance and exit openings 18, 20, respectively. This air curtain servesthree functions. First, it prevents smoke from escaping from theincineration housing 12 through the entrance and exit openings 18, 20,while at the same time avoiding any necessity for a mechanical door thatmust be opened and closed every time it is desired to introduce orremove a railroad car. Secondly, the air curtain provides air to feedthe fire within the incineration housing 12. Thirdly, the air curtainprovides a stream of cooling air along the floor of the'incinerationhousing I2, to prevent excessive heat from being delivered to the trucksof the car.

As shown in FIGS. 1, and 2A the air curtain at the entrance opening isproduced by a fan 22, mounted on suitable support means 24, whichdelivers atmospheric air from an air inlet 25 through an air pipe 26 toan air chamber 28. As shown in FIG. 4, the air chamber 28 has an aircurtain'outlet 30. As shown in FIG. 5, the air curtain outlet 30 has aplurality of internal, parallel vanes 32 which form a plurality ofgenerally rectangular outlet ports 34. In the most preferred embodiment,the air curtain outlet 30 also includes movable baffle 36, which ishinged adjacent to the outlet ports 34. The baffle 36 permits minoradjustments in the direction of the air coming from the air curtainoutlet 30.

As shown in FIG. 4, the air curtain outlet 30 produces an air curtain ata downward and inward angle, as shown by the arrows. In the mostpreferred embodiment, this inward angle is about lO-l5 from thevertical. In the embodiment shown, an air guide trough 38 is scooped outof the earth 16 which forms the floor of the incineration housing l2.This air guide trough 38 aids in directing air from the air curtain intothe interior of the incineration housing 12.

The means for producing the air curtain at the exit opening 20 areidentical to the means described above for producing the air curtain atthe inlet opening 18, and therefore the air curtain means at the exitopening 20 are not shown in detail in the drawings. Referring to FIG.28, these air curtain means at the exit opening 20 include a fan 40, anair pipe 42, an an air chamber 44, and an air curtain outlet 46.

In the preferred embodiment, the air chambers 28, 44, communicate withone another through an air chamber communication pipe 48 shown in FIGS.2 and 4, which runs along the top of the incineration housing 12. Thisair chamber communication pipe 48 has a valve 50 at one end thereof. Theair chamber communication pipe 48 is a useful feature when theincineration apparatus 10 is located out of doors, as will usually bethe case. In the event that there is a strong wind blowing toward eitherthe entrance opening 18 or the exit opening 20, the combined effect ofthe wind and the air curtain will tend to defeat the effect of the aircurtain at the opposite end, causing a draft through the entire lengthof the incineration housing 12, and raising the danger of the deliveryof pollutants to the atmosphere through the entrance or exit opening.

Thus, in accordance with the invention, if a strong wind blows towardthe entrance opening 18, for example, the fan 22 associated with theentrance opening 18 would be shut off, and the valve 50 on the airchamber communication pipe 48 would be opened. This proceduresubstantially reduces the flow of air from the air curtain outlet 30 atthe entrance opening 18. The air curtain would simply have the effect ofdirecting the incoming air in a downward direction, and the wind itselfwould act to shield the entrance opening 18. On the other hand, the fan40 associated with the exit opening 20 would continue to operate, sothat an air curtain of nearly normal volume and velocity would bedelivered across the exit opening 20. If the wind should blow toward theopposite end of the apparatus 10, the above procedure would simply bereversed.

As previously mentioned, where a car has a central door opening, thepresent invention provides means for introducing a stream of air intothe interior of a burning car through the door opening. To this end, apair of air blower pipes 52 communicated with the air chamber 28, andrun lengthwise along the interior of the incineration housing 12. Theair blower pipes 52 are positioned approximately 40 inches above thetracks 19, i.e., slightly above the level of the floor of a standard boxcar. Referring to FIG. 6, these air blower pipes 52 have a plurality ofair injector pipes 56 communicating therewith and projectinghorizontally inwardly toward the center line of the incineration housing12. As shown in FIG. 7, each air injector pipe 56 has a flattened endwhich expands the air stream as it is directed to the interior ofa boxcar.

Referring to FIG. 2A, the air injector pipes 56 are spaced from oneanother at the distance between door openings of two uncoupled box cars.Since standard cars are either 40 or 50 feet long, these injector pipesare preferably spaced about 43 feet apart, so that they will meet thedoor openings of either length of car. The air blower pipes 52communicating with the air chamber 23 associated with the entranceopening 18 travel approximately to the center of the incinerationhousing 12. A similar pair of air blower pipes 54 having air injectorpipes 56 communicate with the air chamber 44 associated with the exitopening 20. These air blower pipes 54 supply the air to railroad cars inthe second half of the apparatus shown in FIG. 2B.

A plurality of smoke collectors 64, of generally horizontal cylindricalconfiguration, are positioned at the top of the incineration housing 12.These smoke collectors 64 have smoke ports or openings 66 on theunderside thereof, communicating with the interior of the incinerationhousing l2. Smoke and gases collected by the smoke collectors 64 aredelivered to a pair of primary manifolds through primary smoke deliverypipes 70. As shown in FIGS. 2A and 28, one primary smoke delivery pipe70 communicates with each of the smoke collec tors 64. The primary smokedelivery pipes along one side of the incineration housing 12 communicatewith a first primary manifold 72, while the pipes on the opposite sideof the housing 12 communicate with a second primary manifold 74. Thefirst and second primary manifolds 72, 74, communicate, respectively,with a first secondary manifold 76 and a second secondary manifold 78.This communication is provided by a plurality of secondary smokedelivery pipes 30. The relationship between the smoke collectors 64, theprimary smoke delivery pipes 70, the primary manifolds 72, 74, thesecondary manifolds 76, 78, and the secondary smoke delivery pipes 80 isparticularly well shown in FIGS. 2A and 2B, taken together with FIG. 6.

Smoke and gases which are the products of combustion of a railroad carburning within the incinerator housing 12 pass through the primary smokedelivery pipes 70, primary manifolds 72, 74, secondary smoke deliverypipes 80, and

secondary manifolds 76, 78, to first and second combustion productsremoval systems, generally indicated respectively by reference numerals82 and 84. Since these combustion products removal systems 82, 84 areidentical, they will be simultaneously described, and like parts will bedesignated by like reference numerals.

Products of combustion from the secondary manifolds 76, 78 first passinto an afterburner 86 having a refractory lining, and having aplurality of gas jets 88. These gas jets 88 deliver an ignited gas-airmixture into the afterburner 86, burning many of the solid products ofcombustion and completely oxidizing many of the partially oxidized gasessuch as carbon monoxide. The products of combustion then pass through aseries of baffles 90, which intercept many of the particulate materialsthat were not removed in the afterburner 86.

After passing through the baffles 90, the products of combustion passinto a scrubber 92. As shown in FIG. 8, the scrubber 92 has a pluralityof water spray nozzles 94 positioned in an upper portion thereof. Thesewater spray nozzles 94 spray water downwardly within the scrubber 92,carrying solid particles with them, and dissolving water-soluble gases.A plurality of drain pipes 96 communicate with the bottom of thescrubber 92. In the present invention, these drain pipes 96 eachcommunicate with the interior of the scrubber 92 through a well formedby an upstanding wall 100, which rises 11 short distance above the floor98. The use of the short walls 100 causes a shallow pool of water 102 tobe formed on the floor of the scrubber 92. This water 102 is drawn offat the top, so that solid materials collected within the scrubber 92will be swirled to the drain pipe 96, Preferably the scrubber in cludesmeans for turning on only a portion of the water spray nozzles 94, sinceall of them may not be needed when relatively little smoke is beingproduced.

After the combustion products have been delivered to the scrubber 92,most of the atmospheric pollutants will have been removed. The gases,which are now relatively free ofparticles, pass through a second seriesof baffles 104 to a fan 105. The fan 105 is driven by an electric motor106 through a belt 107. The fan 105 delivers the gases to a stack 108,which, in turn, delivers the gases to the atmosphere. The stack 108 isequipped with a photo cell 110 and a light source 112, shown in FIG. 3,which are directed at one another through openings (not shown) locatedon opposite sides of the stack 108. The photo cell is adapted to measurethe density of particle content in the products of combustion deliveredto the stack 108.

A particular advantage of having two combustion products removal systems82, 84 is that one of the systems may be shut down in the event that theincinerator is being operated at partial capacity. Since the smokecollectors 64 are parallel to one another, such an arrangement permitsproducts of combustion to be removed from the incineration housing 12along its entire length, even when only one of the combustion productsremoval systems 82, 84 is in operation.

In the most preferred embodiment, the incineration housing 12, smokecollectors 64, primary smoke delivery pipes 70, primary manifolds 72,74, secondary smoke delivery pipes 80, and second manifolds 76, 78, areall constructed of sheet metal, which is much less expensive thanrefractory materials. Because the incineration housing 12 is suspendedfrom external A-frame members 14, these structural supports will not beaffected by the heat. However, the sheet metal must be cooled in orderto withstand the high temperatures involved. Therefore, the apparatus ofthe present invention is preferably provided with means for sprayingwater over the exterior of the aforementioned sheet metal portions.Referring to FIGS. 2A, 2B and 7, water for cooling the exterior oftheincinerator 10 is carried along the length of the incineration housing12 by a water supply pipe 116, which communicates with a suitable source(not shown) of water under pressure. A plurality of water spray pipes118 having spray nozzles 120 communicate with the water supply pipe 116in a manner which produces a spray pattern over the exterior of theincineration housing 12, the smoke delivery pipes 70, 80, and themanifolds -72, 74, 76. 78.

In order to protect the air curtains at the entrance and exit openings18, 20, respectively, from the effects of crosswinds, in the preferredembodiment the incinerator 10 is provided with an entrance wind screen124 outside the entrance opening 118 and an exit wind screen 126 outsidethe the exit opening 20. Referring to FIG. 1, the entrance wind screen124 has a pair of vertical sidewalls 128 and a flat roof 130, forming atunnellike structure having a wind screen entrance 131. Referring toFIG. 9, the exit wind screen 126 similarly has a pair of sidewalls 132and a flat roof 134, also forming a tunnellike structure having a windscreen exit 135.

When a railroad car is rolled into the incineration housing 12, itinterrupts the air curtain at the entrance opening 18. Similarly, when arailroad car is removed from the incineration housing 12, it interruptsthe air curtain at the exit opening 20. This interruption of the aircurtains could cause a momentary delivery of pollutants to theatmosphere, which it is desirable to avoid. Accordingly, both theentrance wind screen 124 and the exit wind screen 126 are preferablyprovided with air blower means to prevent combustion products from beingdelivered to the atmosphere. These air blower means also serve toprevent delivery to the atmosphere of any combustion products that mayescape from the incineration housing 12 during the incineration of arailroad car. Referring to FIGS. 1, 2A, and 4, the entrance wind screen124 is equipped with a secondary air curtain outlet pipe 136 just abovethe wind screen entrance 131. As shown in FIG. 4, this secondary aircurtain outlet pipe 136 produces a downward and inward flow of air,although the overall strength of the curtain will be far below that ofthe air curtain produced by the air curtain outlet 30 at the entranceopening 18. The secondary air curtain outlet pipe 136 communicates withthe air chamber 28 via an air pipe 138.

Since the primary escape of the combustion products will tend to occurthrough the upper portion of the entrance wind screen 124, a pair ofvertical air blower pipes 140 is also provided within an upper portionof the entrance wind screen 124. These vertical air blower pipes 140have a series of slots 142, which direct a stream of air inwardly asshown by the arrows 144 in FIG. 2A. The vertical air blower pipes 140also communicate with the air chamber 28 via air pipes 146, as shown inFIG. 4.

The air blower system associated with the exit wind screen 126 isvirtually identical to that associated with the entrance wind screen 124as just described. Accordingly, the wind screen exit has a secondary aircurtain outlet pipe 148 connected to the air chamber 44 by an air pipe150, as shown in FIG. 28. Similarly, a pair of vertical air blower pipesare provided communicating with the air chamber 44 via air pipes 152.

As previously mentioned, in the preferred embodiment, the presentinvention includes means for spraying a stream of ignited, flammablematerial into the interior of a railroad box car. Accordingly, an oilpipe 154 and a gas pipe 156 communicate with the interior of theincineration housing 12 near the entrance opening 18, as shown in FIG.2A. The oil pipe 154 communicates with an oil tank 158, having suitablemeans (not shown) for producing a pressure therein, and valve means 159for controlling the flow of oil through the oil pipe 154. At the pointat which they project into the incineration housing 12, the oil pipe 154is above the gas pipe 156 and both pipes, 154, 156 are surrounded by ashield pipe 160, as shown in FIG. 10.

The oil pipe 154 has a nozzle 162 on the end thereof for delivering afine spray of oil. The gas pipe 156 has an orifice 164 in the endthereof. The gas pipe 156 supplies a pilot light for the automaticignitor. Thus, when a car is in position for ignition, the valve means159 is adjusted to produce a flow of oil through the oil pipe 154. Thespray coming from the nozzle 162 is ignited by the pilot light from thegas pipe 156 and a stream of flaming oil is sprayed onto combustibleportions of the railroad car. Accordingly, the shield pipe is positionedjust above the level which coincides with the floor of a standard boxcar, so that flowing oil may be sprayed into the interior through theopen door.

As also previously mentioned, in accordance with one embodiment of theinvention, means are provided for delivering oxygen-enriched air intothe interior ofa railroad box car. Accordingly, as shown in FIG. 2A, anoxygen supply pipe 166 communicates with the interior of theincineration housing 12 adjacent to one of the air injector pipes 56closest to the entrance opening 18. The oxygen supply pipe I66communicates with an oxygen tank'l68, and has suitable valve means, notshown in the drawings. The oxygen pipe is provided only in associationwith the air injector pipe 56 closest to the entrance opening 18, sinceoxygen will ordinarily be required only during the initial stage ofburning. In many cases, no oxygen is required at all.

In the most preferred embodiment, the apparatus is provided with coolingmeans for cooling a railroad car after it is removed from theincineration housing 12. Referring to FIGS. 28 and 9, an invertedU-shaped water spray delivery pipe 170 is positioned within the exitwind screen 126. This water spray delivery pipe 170 has a series ofnozzles I72, which spray water over the sides of a railroad car as itspasses through the exit wind screen 126. The water spray delivery pipeI70 communicates with the end of the water supply pipe 116 via a waterpipe I74.

As will be seen from the foregoing description, a great deal of water isemployed in the operation of the incinerator 10. Much of this water willflow to the ground, and will eventually seep into the interior of theincineration housing I2. Accordingly, the earth retaining walls 23 havea plurality of water drainage pipes 176, which deliver water downwardlythrough the retaining walls 23 to the level of the tracks 19. The floor21 of the incineration chamber 12 has a pair of drainage channels 1180running along the outside edges thereof. These drainage channels 180follow a slight incline from the entrance opening 18 to the exit opening20, so that a liquid flows out of the apparatus to a suitable drain (notshown). The drainage channels 180 also tend to act as air guides for theair delivered into the incinerator 10 by the air curtains at theentrance and exit openings 18, 20, respectively.

An air control channel I82 also runs the length of the aeration chamber12 between the tracks 19. This air control channel 182 also aids inguiding the air from the air curtains along the floor 178 of theincineration housing 12. The air control channel also provides a placefor positioning an automatic feed means (not shown) for feeding earsthrough the apparatus. Such an automatic feed means could, for example,comprise a hook which grips the axle of a car as it moves into theapparatus, guides it to the ignition station, and then guides it to thefirst burning station. Subsequent cars are pushed along by the firstcar.

In operation, a railroad car, such as a box car designated in FIG. 3 byreference numeral I84 is delivered to the incinerator 10 along thetracks 19. It will be assumed at the beginning of operation that theincineration housing 12 has no railroad cars in it. The box car 184,with both of its doors open, is delivered through the entrance openinguntil its doors are even with the shield pipe I60 around the oil pipe154 and the gas pipe 156 (FIGS. 2A and 110). At this point, the car isstopped. For convenience, the position of this car will be referred toherein as the ignition station." The combustible materials in the car,which are primarily wood, are ignited by opening the valve means I59,delivering a spray of flaming oil into the interior of the car. Number 2fuel oil is sufficient for this purpose, and about 0.5 to 1.0 gallonsare ordinarily required. Generally, this oil is sprayed into theinterior of the car over a time period of about 1 minute.

After ignition, the car is moved toward the exit opening until its doorsare even with the first pair of air injector pipes 56 (i.e., thoseclosest to the inlet opening I8) as shown in FIG.

2A. This position is referred to herein as the first burning sta-.

tion." While a simple apparatus could employ only one burning station,multiple burning stations are required if it is desired to burn morethan one car at the same time.

At the first burning station, air is delivered into the interior of thebox car through the air injector pipes 56 to feed the fire.

In the event that the fire is not burning with sufficient intensity(when the wood is wet, for example), oxygen may also be delivered to theinterior of the car through the oxygen supply pipe I66.

After about 15 minutes have elapsed, a second box car is delivered tothe incineration housing 12 by moving it to the ignition station. Whenthis second box car is at the ignition station, it will interrupt theair curtain delivered by the air curtain outlet 30 above the entranceopening 18. Thus, combustion products from the first car, which isalready burning, will have a tendency to escape through the entranceopening 18. However, the secondary air curtain outlet pipe I36 andvertical air blower pipes I40 (FIGS. 2A and 4) prevent the escape ofcombustion products. The second car is ignited by a spray of flaming oilin the same manner as the first.

After ignition, the second car is moved to the first burning station aspreviously described. At the same time, the first car will be moved to aposition where the doors are opposite the second pair of air injectorpipes 56, as shown in FIG. 2A. This position is referred to as thesecond burning station. At the second burning station, incineration ofthe flammable portions of the box car is continued.

The foregoing process is repeated as a third and a fourth box car isignited and delivered to the incineration chamber 12 through theentrance opening 18. As this occurs, the first box car will he movedprogressively to a third burning station," with its doors opposite thethird pair of air injector pipes 56, shown in FIG. 2B, and to a fourthburning station," with its doors adjacent to a fourth pair of airinjector pipes 56. At this point, the incinerator I0 is operating atfull capacity.

When the next box car is delivered to the incinerator 10, the box car atthe fourth burning station will be pushed out through the exit opening20. As the car is pushed out, the air curtain produced by the aircurtain outlet 46 at the exit opening 20 will be interrupted, so thatsmoke may escape through the exit opening 20. However, the escape ofsuch smoke into the surrounding atmosphere is prevented by the verticalair blower pipes I40 and the secondary air curtain outlet pipe I48, aspreviously described in connection with the entrance opening 18.

As the railroad car is removed through the exit wind screen I26, a waterspray (FIGS. 28 and 9) from the water spray delivery pipe cools the car,so that smoldering will be reduced when the car leaves the incinerator10 through the wind screen exit 135.

Cars may be delivered to the incinerator by simply pushing them with alocomotive through the entrance opening 18. Similarly, cars pushedthrough the exit opening 20 may be removed with a second locomotive. Asan alternative to the use of locomotives, the apparatus may be providedwith automatic car feed and removal means as previously described. Thefeed means are located in the central air control channel I82 (FIG. 6),while the removal means are located in a similar channel within the exitwind screen 126. These feed and removal means may operate by grippingthe axle of a railroad car.

During operation, the air curtain outlets 30, 46 (FIGS. 2A, 2B, 4, and5) produce a layer of cool air along the floor 21 of the incinerationhousing 12. This cooling air prevents the trucks and undercarriages ofthe railroad cars from being affected by high-intensity heat. In fact,in many instances, it has been noted that rubber air hoses associatedwith the railroad cars have emerged from the apparatus undamaged fromthe heat. This cooling air is guided along the floor 2I of theincineration chamber 12 by the retaining walls 23, the drainage channelsI80, the air control channel 182, and by the underside of the railroadcar itself.

As the railroad cars are incinerated, smoke and gaseous products ofcombustion are produced. These materials are removed from theincineration housing I2 by the combined effects of the air curtains atthe entrance and exit opening 118, 20, respectively, and the fans I05associated with the combustion products removal systems 82, 84.Referring to FIGS.

2A, 2B, and 6, these combustion products pass into the smoke collectors64 through the smoke ports 66 and then pass through the primary smokedelivery pipes 70 to the primary manifolds 72, 74, and through thesecondary smoke delivery pipes 80 to the secondary manifolds 76, 78. Thecombustion products are then delivered to the afterburners 86 (FIGS. 2Aand 2B) which burn a large proportion of the smoke and further oxidizeincompletely oxidized gaseous products of combustion. The remainingsmoke and gas is then passed to the scrubbers 92, where most of theremaining particulate material and water-soluble gaseous combustionproducts are removed. The remaining gases, along with a very smallamount of particulate materials, is then delivered to the atmospherethrough the stack 108. The smoke emerging from the stack is sensed bythe photocell 110, generally has a value on the Ringelman scale in theneighborhood of about l.5.

In the foregoing description, the apparatus of the present invention hasbeen described primarily in connection with the incineration of boxcars. It will be understood that the description applies equally to allrailroad rolling stock of the type which has center door openings.Included are conventional box cars, stock cars, refrigerator cars,automobile cars, and the like. The apparatus of the present inventionmay also be used to incinerate other types of railroad rolling stock,such as gondolas, hopper cars, and the like. However, most other typesof railroad rolling stock do not have large quantities of wood, andtherefore do not ordinarily require incineration prior to beingscrapped. Furthermore, railroad cars that do not have a central dooropening cannot make use ofthe air injector pipes 56, shown in FIGS. 2A,2B, and 7. However, since such cars generally have a more open design,no problem is encountered in delivering adequate oxygen for completecombustion. Therefore, when delivering a group of cars having centraldoors to the incinerator 10, they will be often mixed with other typesof rolling stock.

Obviously, many modifications and variations of the invention ashereinbefore set forth will occur to those skilled in the art, and it isintended to cover in the appended claims all such modifications andvariations as fall within the true spirit of scope of the invention.

lclaim:

l. A method for incinerating a railroad car in an incineration housingcomprising: igniting combustible materials in said car; delivering astream of air along the underside of said car while burning said car andtreating products of combustion produced during the burning of said car.

2. The method as defined in claim 1, wherein said railroad car has acentral door opening, and further including the step of blowing air intothe interior of sad car through said door opening while burning saidcar.

3. The method as defined in claim 2 further including the step ofblowing oxygen into the interior of said car while burning said car.

4. The method as defined in claim 1 further including the step ofcooling said car with a spray of water subsequent to said burning.

5. A method for incinerating a railroad car having a central dooropening in an incineration housing comprising: igniting combustiblematerials in said car; blowing air into the interior of said car throughsaid door opening while burning said car; and treating products ofcombustion produced during the burning of said car.

6. The method as defined in claim 5 further including the steps ofblowing oxygen into the interior of said car through said door openingwhile burning said car.

7. The method as defined in claim 5 further including the steps ofcooling said car with a spray of water subsequent to said burning.

8. A method for incinerating a railroad car having a central dooropening in an incineration housing comprising: moving said car to anignition station; igniting the combustible materials in the interior ofsaid car; moving said car to a burning station; blowing air into theinterior of said car through said door opening while burning said car atsaid burning station; delivering a stream of air along the floor of saidincineration housing, whereby to cool the trucks of said car; andtreating the products of combustion produced during the burning of saidcar.

9. The method as defined in claim 8 further including the steps ofcooling said car with a spray of water subsequent to said burning.

10. A method for simultaneously incinerating a plurality of railroadcars in an incineration housing comprising: moving a first car to anignition station; igniting combustible materials in said first car;moving said first car downstream to a first burning station; moving asecond car to said ignition station; igniting combustible materials insaid second car; moving said second car downstream to said first burningstation; simultaneously moving said first and second cars; anddelivering a stream of air along the underside of said cars whileburning said cars at said burning stations.

11. The method as defined in claim 10 wherein at least one of said carshas a central door opening, and further including the step of blowingair into the interior of said car through said door opening while saidcar is burning at said burning station.

12. The method as defined in claim 11, further including the step ofcooling said cars with a spray of water subsequent to said burning.

13. lmproved apparatus for incinerating railroad cars comprising: anelongated incineration housing having oppositely disposed entrance andexit openings; means for removing products of combustion from an upperportion of said housing; means for removing particulate materials fromsaid products of combustion; and air curtain means for passing a curtainof air downwardly and inwardly at said entrance and exit openings, andfor producing a layer of cooling air along the floor of saidincineration housing.

14. The apparatus as defined in claim 13 further including means forpassing water over the exterior of said housing.

15. The apparatus as defined in claim 13 further including cooling meanspositioned beyond said exit opening.

16. The apparatus as defined in claim 15 wherein said cooling meanscomprise means for spraying water over said car.

17. The apparatus as defined in claim 13 further including a wind screenadjacent to said entrance opening and a wind screen adjacent to saidexit opening.

18. The apparatus as defined in claim 17 further including air blowermeans within said wind screen for preventing products of combustion fromescaping from said housing through said entrance and exit openings.

1Q. The apparatus as defined in claim 13 wherein said means for removingparticulate materials include a water scrubber comprising means forspraying a downward stream of water through said products of combustion;means for retaining a pool of water at the base of said water scrubber;and drain means for draining water from the upper level of said pool.

20. The apparatus as defined in claim 19 wherein said drain meanscomprise means projecting upwardly through the floor of said waterscrubber and having an opening above the floor of said scrubber.

21. The apparatus as defined in claim 13 further including means forspraying a stream of ignited, flammable material onto said car withinsaid housing.

22. The apparatus as defined in claim 13 further including means withinsaid housing for introducing a stream of air into the interior ofaburning car having a central door opening.

23. The apparatus as defined in claim 22 further including means fordelivering a stream of oxygen-enriched air into the interior of saidcar.

24. The apparatus as defined in claim 13 wherein said air curtain meansinclude baffle means for adjusting the inward angle at which saidcurtain of air is delivered.

25. The apparatus as defined in claim 13 further including air pipemeans providing communication between said air curtain means at saidentrance and exit openings; and valve means on said air pipe means.

i ll

26. Improved apparatus for incinerating railroad cars including carshaving a central door opening comprising: an elongated incinerationhousing having oppositely disposed entrance and exit openings; meanswithin said housing for introducing a stream of air into the interior ofsaid railroad cars through said door openings; means for removingproducts of combustion from an upper portion of said housing; and meansfor removing particulate materials from said products of combustion.

27. The apparatus as defined in claim 26 further including means forpassing water over the exterior of said housing.

28. The apparatus as defined in claim 26 further including cooling meanspositioned beyond said exit opening.

29. Improved apparatus for incinerating railroad cars having a centraldoor opening comprising: an elongated incineration housing havingoppositely disposed entrance and exit openings; means for removingproducts of combustion from an upper portion of said housing; means forremoving particulate materials from said products of combustion; meansfor passing a curtain of air downwardly and inwardly at said entranceand exit openings; means for spraying a stream of ignited, flammablematerial onto combustible portions of said car within said housing;means within said housing for introducing a stream of air into theinterior of a burning car through said central door opening; a windscreen adjacent to said entrance opening; and a wind screen adjacent tosaid exit opening; and air blower means within said wind screens forpreventing products of combustion from escaping from said wind screensinto the atmosphere.

30. The apparatus as defined in claim 29 wherein said housing isconstructed of metal and is suspended from external A- frame members,and further including means for passing water over the exterior of saidhousing.

31. The apparatus as defined in claim 29 wherein said means for removingparticulate materials include a water scrubber comprising means forspraying a downward stream of water through said products of combustionand drain pipe means projecting upwardly through the floor of said waterscrubber and having an opening above the floor of said scrubber.

32. The apparatus as defined in claim 29 further including means fordelivering a stream of oxygen-enriched air into the door of said carwithin said housing.

33. The apparatus as defined in claim 29 wherein said air curtain meansinclude baffle means for adjusting the inward angle at which saidcurtain of air is delivered.

34. The apparatus as defined in claim 29 further including air pipemeans communicating between said air curtain means at said entrance andexit openings; and valve means on said pipe means.

35. Improved apparatus for simultaneously incinerating a plurality ofrailroad cars having a central door opening, comprising: an elongatedincineration housing having oppositely disposed entrance and exitopenings; means for removing products of combustion from an upperportion of said housing; means for removing particulate materials fromsaid products of combustions; means for passing a curtain of airdownwardly and inwardly at said entrance and exit openings; means forspraying a stream of ignited, flammable material into said railroad carsthrough said central door openings; means within said housing forsimultaneously introducing air into the interior of a plurality ofburning cars in end-to-end relationship within said housing through saidcentral door openings.

36. The apparatus as defined in claim 35 further including an entrancewind screen adjacent to said entrance opening and an exit wind screenadjacent to said exit opening; and air blower means for preventingproducts of combustion from escaping from said wind screens into theatmosphere.

37. The apparatus as defined in claim 36 further including cooling meansin said exit wind screen for spraying water over said car.

1. A method for incinerating a railroad car in an incineration housingcomprising: igniting combustible materials in said car; delivering astream of air along the underside of said car while burning said car andtreating products of combustion produced during the burning of said car.2. The method as defined in claim 1, wherein said railroad car has acentral door opening, and further including the step of blowing air intothe interior of sad car through said door opening while burning saidcar.
 3. The method as defined in claim 2 further including the step ofblowing oxygen into the interior of said car while burning said car. 4.The method as defined in claim 1 further including the step of coolingsaid car with a spray of water subsequent to said burning.
 5. A methodfor incinerating a railroad car having a central door opening in anincineration housing comprising: igniting combustible materials in saidcar; blowing air into the interior of said car through said door openingwhile burning said car; and treating products of combustion producedduring the burning of said car.
 6. The method as defined in claim 5further including the steps of blowing oxygen into the interior of saidcar through said door opening while burning said car.
 7. The method asdefined in claim 5 further including the steps of cooling said car witha spray of water subsequent to said burning.
 8. A method forincinerating a railroad car having a central door opening in anincineration housing comprising: moving said car to an ignition station;igniting the combustible materials in the interior of said car; movingsaid car to a burning station; blowing air into the interior of said carthrough said door opening while burning said car at said burningstation; delivering a stream of air along the floor of said incinerationhousing, whereby to cool the trucks of said car; and treating theproducts of combustion produced during the burning of said car.
 9. Themethod as defined in claim 8 further including the steps of cooling saidcar with a spray of water subsequent to said burning.
 10. A method forsimultaneously incinerating a plurality of railroad cars in anIncineration housing comprising: moving a first car to an ignitionstation; igniting combustible materials in said first car; moving saidfirst car downstream to a first burning station; moving a second car tosaid ignition station; igniting combustible materials in said secondcar; moving said second car downstream to said first burning station;simultaneously moving said first and second cars; and delivering astream of air along the underside of said cars while burning said carsat said burning stations.
 11. The method as defined in claim 10 whereinat least one of said cars has a central door opening, and furtherincluding the step of blowing air into the interior of said car throughsaid door opening while said car is burning at said burning station. 12.The method as defined in claim 11, further including the step of coolingsaid cars with a spray of water subsequent to said burning.
 13. Improvedapparatus for incinerating railroad cars comprising: an elongatedincineration housing having oppositely disposed entrance and exitopenings; means for removing products of combustion from an upperportion of said housing; means for removing particulate materials fromsaid products of combustion; and air curtain means for passing a curtainof air downwardly and inwardly at said entrance and exit openings, andfor producing a layer of cooling air along the floor of saidincineration housing.
 14. The apparatus as defined in claim 13 furtherincluding means for passing water over the exterior of said housing. 15.The apparatus as defined in claim 13 further including cooling meanspositioned beyond said exit opening.
 16. The apparatus as defined inclaim 15 wherein said cooling means comprise means for spraying waterover said car.
 17. The apparatus as defined in claim 13 furtherincluding a wind screen adjacent to said entrance opening and a windscreen adjacent to said exit opening.
 18. The apparatus as defined inclaim 17 further including air blower means within said wind screen forpreventing products of combustion from escaping from said housingthrough said entrance and exit openings.
 19. The apparatus as defined inclaim 13 wherein said means for removing particulate materials include awater scrubber comprising means for spraying a downward stream of waterthrough said products of combustion; means for retaining a pool of waterat the base of said water scrubber; and drain means for draining waterfrom the upper level of said pool.
 20. The apparatus as defined in claim19 wherein said drain means comprise means projecting upwardly throughthe floor of said water scrubber and having an opening above the floorof said scrubber.
 21. The apparatus as defined in claim 13 furtherincluding means for spraying a stream of ignited, flammable materialonto said car within said housing.
 22. The apparatus as defined in claim13 further including means within said housing for introducing a streamof air into the interior of a burning car having a central door opening.23. The apparatus as defined in claim 22 further including means fordelivering a stream of oxygen-enriched air into the interior of saidcar.
 24. The apparatus as defined in claim 13 wherein said air curtainmeans include baffle means for adjusting the inward angle at which saidcurtain of air is delivered.
 25. The apparatus as defined in claim 13further including air pipe means providing communication between saidair curtain means at said entrance and exit openings; and valve means onsaid air pipe means.
 26. Improved apparatus for incinerating railroadcars including cars having a central door opening comprising: anelongated incineration housing having oppositely disposed entrance andexit openings; means within said housing for introducing a stream of airinto the interior of said railroad cars through said door openings;means for removing products of combustion from an upper portion of saidhousing; and means for removing particulate materials from said productsoF combustion.
 27. The apparatus as defined in claim 26 furtherincluding means for passing water over the exterior of said housing. 28.The apparatus as defined in claim 26 further including cooling meanspositioned beyond said exit opening.
 29. Improved apparatus forincinerating railroad cars having a central door opening comprising: anelongated incineration housing having oppositely disposed entrance andexit openings; means for removing products of combustion from an upperportion of said housing; means for removing particulate materials fromsaid products of combustion; means for passing a curtain of airdownwardly and inwardly at said entrance and exit openings; means forspraying a stream of ignited, flammable material onto combustibleportions of said car within said housing; means within said housing forintroducing a stream of air into the interior of a burning car throughsaid central door opening; a wind screen adjacent to said entranceopening; and a wind screen adjacent to said exit opening; and air blowermeans within said wind screens for preventing products of combustionfrom escaping from said wind screens into the atmosphere.
 30. Theapparatus as defined in claim 29 wherein said housing is constructed ofmetal and is suspended from external A-frame members, and furtherincluding means for passing water over the exterior of said housing. 31.The apparatus as defined in claim 29 wherein said means for removingparticulate materials include a water scrubber comprising means forspraying a downward stream of water through said products of combustionand drain pipe means projecting upwardly through the floor of said waterscrubber and having an opening above the floor of said scrubber.
 32. Theapparatus as defined in claim 29 further including means for deliveringa stream of oxygen-enriched air into the door of said car within saidhousing.
 33. The apparatus as defined in claim 29 wherein said aircurtain means include baffle means for adjusting the inward angle atwhich said curtain of air is delivered.
 34. The apparatus as defined inclaim 29 further including air pipe means communicating between said aircurtain means at said entrance and exit openings; and valve means onsaid pipe means.
 35. Improved apparatus for simultaneously incineratinga plurality of railroad cars having a central door opening, comprising:an elongated incineration housing having oppositely disposed entranceand exit openings; means for removing products of combustion from anupper portion of said housing; means for removing particulate materialsfrom said products of combustions; means for passing a curtain of airdownwardly and inwardly at said entrance and exit openings; means forspraying a stream of ignited, flammable material into said railroad carsthrough said central door openings; means within said housing forsimultaneously introducing air into the interior of a plurality ofburning cars in end-to-end relationship within said housing through saidcentral door openings.
 36. The apparatus as defined in claim 35 furtherincluding an entrance wind screen adjacent to said entrance opening andan exit wind screen adjacent to said exit opening; and air blower meansfor preventing products of combustion from escaping from said windscreens into the atmosphere.
 37. The apparatus as defined in claim 36further including cooling means in said exit wind screen for sprayingwater over said car.